Teacher in sex ad case loses reinstatement

A San Diego middle schoolteacher who was fired and then reinstated over placing a sex ad on Craigslist lost his reinstatement this week after a state appeals court overturned the decision by the Commission on Professional Competence.

Frank Lampedusa, a teacher and dean of students at Farb Middle School in the San Diego Unified School District, lost his job in 2008 after explicit photos of him surfaced on a Craigslist ad for men seeking men. Although Lampedusa removed the photos when asked, he was later fired.

In June 2009, the Commission of Professional Competence issued a ruling condemning Lampedusa’s conduct, but said the district failed to prove any connection to the teacher’s employment.

The 4th District Court of Appeals overturned that decision and agreed with the school district that Lampedusa’s conduct fit the Education Code definition of “immoral conduct.”